


You Give Me Fever

by xsilverdreamsx



Category: Young Avengers
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Awkwardness, Homophobic Language, M/M, Minor Swearing, Some Fluffiness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-04-29
Updated: 2012-04-29
Packaged: 2017-11-04 12:28:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/393840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xsilverdreamsx/pseuds/xsilverdreamsx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Billy keeps blushing around Teddy a lot, until the one time when he makes Teddy blush first.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You Give Me Fever

**Author's Note:**

> I was cleaning up my WIP folder and found this bit of fluffiness. Beta'ed by the ever-awesome Etharei. <3\. (Title taken from the lyrics in Adam Lambert's "Fever")

The first time Billy meets Teddy, he's too busy bleeding from the nose to say anything to him, let alone thank him.

Billy is walking past the lockers after Spanish class and scowling over big, fat “D” that he got on his latest test, when he suddenly finds himself being shoved up against the lockers.

"Where do you think you're going, _fag_?" Kesler hisses into his ear, pinning Billy against the doors with one hand.

Billy does something that he would later consider to be _the stupidest thing he’d ever done in his entire life_.

He knees the bully in the balls.

For a split second, Billy hears his brain cheering loudly over the fact that he’s managed to strike at Kesler (who makes it his personal goal to stick Billy into a locker at least twice a day). There’s a roaring noise in his ears, the kind when you’ve done something completely out of the norm and terribly exciting and the adrenaline is pumping madly through your veins and increasing your heart rate. This is what Billy feels, coupled with the fact that his mind is supplying all sorts of scenarios where the other kids will rally around Billy and cheer and calls him their hero, and he'll stop being the quiet, unpopular, geeky kid that no one really talks to.

Of course, with the way Billy’s luck is, Kesler manages to recover long enough to still have Billy pinned against the lockers. Instead of cowering in fear and begging for mercy (Billy thinks that maybe his comics aren’t such a reliable reference for real-life heroism), he straightens up and tightens his grip around Billy’s neck and slams him back against the metal doors.

Kesler growls at him and it’s the only warning Billy gets before a large fist appears in his line of sight and he closes his eyes on instinct, waiting for a whole world of pain to happen.

But it never comes. Billy opens one eye tentatively, and he sees that Kesler’s fist is barely a hair’s breadth away from Billy’s nose. He opens both eyes and sees that someone has Kesler in an armlock around the neck, while holding back his hand from flying into Billy’s face.

Billy flinches away, scrambling to the side and trying to put as much distance as he can between himself and the other two - Billy doesn’t like to think of this as running away so much as a _strategic tactical retreat_ \- and promptly runs into the wall.

There are sounds of scuffling, swearing, running footsteps that fade away, and then there are warm hands on him, holding his chin and face, tilting them up towards the light. Billy whines; his nose _hurts_ , and then he hears a concerned sounding "Hey man, hang in there, I’ll get the school nurse". Billy blinks, still dazed from the impact, in time to see a vague man-shaped giant standing over him, a glint of metal gleaming at the edge of his ears.

Billy remembers trying to open his mouth, trying to say something to his rescuer, but instead, he passes out.

When Billy comes to later in school clinic, his mother is there, holding a cloth to his nose to stop the bleeding. She immediately lectures him for getting into a fight and threatens to ground him for a month, but all Billy can think of is how he fainted _in front of the hot new guy in school_ and he blushes furiously and wonders if he should start looking at new schools to move to to hide from the embarrassment.

*** * ***

The second time Billy meets Teddy, he doesn't notice the other boy until he's practically lying on top of him, breathless and grimy and sweaty.

Billy's cutting across the park to head over to Jacob's place so that they can try out his new Wii. Jacob's dad, who works for Stark Technologies, plies the boy with an endless supply of electronic gifts. The new Wii is supposed to come equipped with holographic sensors, so Billy is eager to pull on the helmet and pretend that he's a hero, fighting off villains just like in the movies.

He's listening to Matt Bellamy on his iPod singing about hopes and expectations and starlights, when a massive _somebody_ crashes into him.

Billy finds himself lying on the grass, staring up at a pair of blue eyes that are blinking back at him in confusion.

The guy is babbling, but Billy can't hear him and panics for a second, thinking that he’s gone deaf. Billy gapes at him for a bit, and then realizes that he still has his headphones on, and Taylor Swift’s voice is now filling up his ears with fairy tales (he’s going to kill Tommy for messing up his playlist _again_ ). He hurriedly reaches up and tugs at the wires, yanking the headphones out, catching the tail-end of the other guy’s babble of apologies.

" --was trying to catch the ball and wasn’t looking. Hey, are you okay? I'm really sorry --"

"Urm." Billy contemplates their positions; he wants to stand up, but the guy is still hovering over him, his arms and legs bracketing Billy’s body. He feels a pleasant shiver run down his spine and blushes furiously, struggling to get up and away from before his body can betray its interest in the proceedings. The other guy notices Billy trying to move away and realizes their positions, and quickly pushes himself off him.

"I'm... I'm okay."

Billy gets up from the ground, and stands there for a few seconds, feeling a little embarrassed and maybe a little tongue-tied. This is the second time he’s run into this guy, and he wants to say something, maybe thank him for saving him from Kesler and maybe ask him for his name, but all he can think of is how good-looking the guy is, standing in front of Billy while his hands (oh, what _big, and strong_ hands they are) toss the pigskin that he had picked up from where it had landed earlier.

“Hey man, what’s taking you so long?” Billy turns around, and sees is a group of jocks, all headed this way. Out of the corner of his eye, he notices the guy giving them a wave, and realizes that these are his friends, and probably the same group of friends he must have been tossing the ball with. Billy's not really a fan of jocks, especially when he remembers that a few of them haven’t been especially nice to him before, so he makes up his mind to get out of there as soon as he can.

"Urm. I really need to go. I’m kinda late, sorry," Billy mumbles as he edges away from the guy, and he turns and hurries off before anyone can stop him, his face heating up from a mixture of half-embarrassment and half-arousal.

*** * ***

The third time he meets Teddy, Billy's working the evening shift at the coffee shop. He’s squatting down behind the counter, rearranging the cupcakes in the windowed display when he hears the tinkle of the bell above the shop's door, announcing the arrival of a customer.

“Hello?”

"Just a minute!" he manages out cheerfully, placing the last two frosted cupcakes onto the plate, and standing upright, ready with the usual standard greeting.

"Welcome to Speedy Coffee, what can I ---" the words die out on his lips as he realizes that the customer is none other than The Guy.

(Yes, Billy is capitalizing the words, because since he can’t muster enough balls to ask him for his name, he’s just going to have to keep calling him The Guy. Or Tall, Blond and Gorgeous, which is kind of a mouthful.)

"Oh, hey!" The Guy flashes him a warm smile, and leans against the counter. "How are you feeling?"

He's a big strapping guy, and looks to be just a little taller than Billy, with a square set of his shoulders and stocky and all muscles. His ends of his hair curves against his neck, with a stray lock sticking out that should make him look funny, but instead makes him look really adorable. A few strands curl around his ears, and Billy realizes that his ears are pierced and adorned with a row of rings and gauges. Billy wonders what it would be like to run his tongue over the metal and trace each piercing---

"Urm, can I get my drink?" The Guy asks hesitantly, jarring Billy from his daydream. Flustered, and ignoring the heat that's slowly making its way to his cheeks, Billy just nods stupidly.

"S-s-sorry, what was your drink again?" Billy stammers out, ignoring the strange look being sent his way as the guy repeats his order.

Billy turns around to make the drink, blending the ingredients together with ice and pouring it into the cup when he’s done. He adds a little more whipped cream than usual, and tries not to think of other things he could do with the cream to this guy as he finally hands over the cup.

Taking his drink, the guy pulls out the straw that Billy has stuck into the cup, popping the end into his mouth and sucking at it slightly, licking the cream surrounding it.

That is just _unfair_ , Billy thinks miserably.

The guy hums in contentment, apparently having completed some ritual which is now going into Billy’s folder as new material to jerk off to, and puts the straw back into the cup and sucks up the drink, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallows.

Billy gulps. The coffee shop suddenly feels very, very warm.

"How much do I owe you?” the guy asks. Flustered, Billy quotes the price and the guy digs out a couple of notes from his pocket, counting out the right amount. Their fingers touch briefly when he hands over the money, and Billy holds back a shiver at this.

"I was wondering--" the guy begins to say, but he's interrupted from saying anymore when someone yanks open the door to the shop and sticks his head in.

"Dude, come on! We're gonna miss the game!"

The guy looks at Billy and shrugs an apologetic _sorry, I have to go_ and Billy convinces himself that he's imagining the look of disappointment that flashes across the guy's face before he leaves.

But then the guy turns and smiles at him again just before stepping out of the shop and Billy drops the tray of cookies onto the floor, blushing like crazy.

*** * ***

Billy is resting his chin on his arm, his head tilted sideways as he doodles aimlessly in his notebook. He's sitting at one of the outdoor tables on the school compound during his lunch break, waiting for Jacob to turn up so that they can open the carefully wrapped package that’s burning a hole in his bag. It’s the latest issue of the X-Men comics, one which he and Jacob have been waiting for _months_ now for its release, so they’ve agreed to treat the unveiling as a sacred moment.

Billy likes this spot, it's quiet and further away from the cafeteria, and partially shaded by the trees. A few of the tables nearby are occupied with one or two students, quietly chatting or eating silently, but Billy doesn't pay attention to them.

Finally, when he hears footsteps come up to the table and the sound of someone sitting across him, he mutters out, "Seriously, I thought you were going to bail on me and _totally miss out_ on what Magneto's planning next --" and pauses mid-sentence, his hand still holding up the comic book he had just pulled out from his bag, and stares at the boy sitting opposite him.

Who apparently, from the blond hair and blue eyes and muscular built, _isn’t_ Jacob.

"Hi." It’s the same guy – Billy had finally asked around and found out that his name is Teddy Altman, newest linebacker for the school’s football team - whom Billy hasn’t seen since he served him his coffee two days ago.

Teddy smiles at him. "Er." Billy answers stupidly.

The minute the words are out of his mouth, Billy considers ducking under the table. He’s going to have to learn to say more words around Teddy before the he thinks that Billy is an idiot or something.

Teddy plucks the comic out of Billy's hand and glances at the cover. "Magneto, huh?"

Oh gods, Teddy knows Billy’s a _geek_ and is going to make fun of him and totally ruin all his fantasies and Billy’s going to have to sweep up his shattered self-esteem and move schools and change his name --

"I kind of like Professor X, though,” Teddy admits as he touches the edge of the plastic wrapping, picking at the tape that is sealing it. “His powers are pretty cool. I mean, you know, mind reading, man, that is just awesome."

Billy blinks in confusion, before his love for all things geeky took over his mouth."Oh _come on_ , the Prof can't go up against Magneto’s helmet," Billy says before he can stop himself. “There’s no way he could lose!”

Teddy’s smile broadens and Billy’s heart skips a beat.

"To tell you the truth, I always wondered if Magneto and the Professor had a thing going on between them in the comics," Teddy confides, still looking smiling, but there’s a shy quality to it now, "but obviously they're never going to admit that."

This time, it’s Teddy who turns red instantly, the tips of his ears and his neck flushing, and Billy practically beams in response.

If Billy maybe falls in love with him a little more at that point, he doesn't admit it until their third date, when he discovers _exactly_ how sensitive Teddy’s ears are.


End file.
